Saturday, January 3, 2009

Writing is supposed to be therapeutic, or a release of sorts. It allows for a person to gather his or her thoughts, edit them, check if they are grammatically correct, and even use unnecessary large words to say something rather simple. But, sometimes we just don't feel it.

You can write when you are not in the mood, but rarely does it prove fruitful. But if fruits are not what interest you, then I suppose it might be worthwhile to do it anyway. Such is the case for me today. I'm writing about writing. You might think that that would indicate that I have a dearth of material. You would be wrong. I could be writing about the US-China space race, the recent Palestinian-Israeli conflict, John Travolta's son, the EU's new President Vaclav Klaus, or about how I'm reading the sixth book in the Chronicles of Narnia series, but I'm not.

I'm writing about writing.

It can be entertaining (one of the main reasons I do it) or it can be therapeutic, as I mentioned earlier. Writing is essential for speaking well, reasoning well, and making sense of the world. However, while writing often helps the writer make sense of the world and his own thoughts on the world, the world still remains quite unpredictable, strange, and inexplicable to those who do not write, as well as it does for those who do write and do not agree with you. However, that is no reason to give up on writing.

As you increase your vocabulary and reasoning skills through writing, you inevitably must embrace new theories, ideas, styles, and roots. While doing this of course your mind hypothetically or even quite literally expands and allows you more room to find room for other people's ideas, cultures, styles, and foundations. This newfound attitude of openness however does not mean that a person need throw out all of their initial pretenses for ones that may seem more erudite and evolved. But, what it does mean is that a writer must be more willing to entertain and consider opposing views, and ideas. That consideration in and of itself is progress.

Friday, January 2, 2009

I'm sure you've read about new year's resolutions, lists of bests and worsts of the past year, and all that mumbo jumbo on other blogs. Well, I'm not about to be one of those other blogs.

It is indeed a new year. 2008 has left us. But honestly, so what? It happens every year. One year goes and another one comes. It's really not any more exciting than the calender turning from March to April. In fact, I have end of the month parties regularly. I get bags of balloons, confetti, party hats, noise-makers, and random circus animals at the end of every month. I often invite long estranged or hardly related family members to these parties, and any other random people I can find in the neighborhood.

And, if end of the month parties were not enough, I also throw end of the week parties, end of the day parties, and end of the hour parties. Some turn out to be bigger than others, but all are worth it. It's fun to celebrate turning a new leaf. Whether that leaf is an hour, a month, or a year, all I can say is it's fun.

Monday, December 29, 2008

Freckled people are taking over the world. They have been plotting it for years now. After centuries of oppression and such painful and caustic expressions like "red-headed stepchild" to the deformed creature Caliban in Shakespeare's The Tempest, referred to as a "freckled whelp," they have finally come back for vengeance. Here are some pictures of their leaders:

Molly Ringwald from the Breakfast Club

Carrot Top

Conan O'Brien

Ron Howard

Julianne Moore

Lindsay Lohan

And you know that Carrot Top and Lohan are the ring leaders. Scared yet?

Sunday, December 28, 2008

Holiday leftovers are great. Turkey, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, string beans and bacon, three bean salad, yams, and trays and boxes of chocolates, cookies, and fruits. My family could easily live off leftovers for the next week. The unfortunate side effect is weight gain. That is, if you sit around doing nothing most of the time. Fortunately I do stuff. Unfortunately, that stuff is mostly going out to dinner with family and friends. Going out to dinner with a week's worth of leftovers at my disposal makes no sense whatsoever. Which is why my family seems to do it (That and it was my Dad's birthday and because he was sick on the day we ordered Chinese food, and then we went out to Outback Steakhouse the next day when he was feeling better).

So leftovers are a boon and a curse. I love to eat them, and they love to be eaten, but unless I do something beyond restaurant excursions, the possibility of me becoming a professional sumo wrestler increases.

Self-Aggrandizing Photo

Michael Powers

About the Author

Michael Powers is a fairly cultured American with an eye for seriousness, but willing to entertain the occasional dabble into the surreal and the inane. His writing focuses on news, random stories, politics, and social issues with his own brand of cynicism, but always with a humorous or optimistic outlook.